Washing Lines

Our washing line is probably nylon braided (I'm sure it's not steel cored) and it's lasted the six years we've been in our house so far, supporting the weight and wind strain of a couple of sheets/blankets (as well as routine washing).

The only times it's collapsed have been when the eye-bolt has pulled out of the wall. I've now jammed a couple of pieces of wood in the hole in the masonry as a crude Rawlplug.

We'd use the line more, but my wife can detect "a horrible chemical smell" on anything that's been hung outside. She can't smell it in the air, nor on clothes that have been dried in the tumble drier or hung on a drying rack in front of the Aga. I can't smell anything on line-dried washing that I can't also smell on washing that has been dried any other way (eg a faint perfume from the washing tablet). Sadly she can't describe the nature of the smell or what it's similar to, but she can smell it very strongly. We live in a rural area with occasional faint farmyard manure smells or smells of fertiliser/weedkiller wafting from nearby farmer's fields, but she says the "horrible chemical smell" isn't like any of those.

So I dry my things on the line (when I remember) and put up with her saying "I can smell that smell on your clothes" for a couple of days, but anything of hers goes in the tumble drier.

Galvanised steel rope?

Although I'm not sure if the oxidised zinc plating might come off on the clothes?

Theo

Random thought...stainless steel specced for maritime usage?

I think that's about the level of it, they're cheap.

Are you near any yacht marinas? You can sometimes find people renewing or getting rigging renewed and disposing of the old which is sometimes stainless steel.

GH

I have bought 'deluxe' steel core washing lines, and been pretty happy with them. The steel core is thicker, and braided, and the ?PVC? covering is thicker and of better quality, than the bog standard ones.

I have probably bought two in 25 years, so can't remember exactly where I got them ;-) - could well have been via eBay. Our washing line spans bout 12m FWIW - I think I had to buy a 20m length.

HTH J^n

AOL.

Persuading domestic staff to use an outdoor drying line once they have used a tumble drier is beyond uphill:-(

Cotton towels dry to a *sandpaper* texture and electricity bills are not a welcomed topic of conversation!

Interesting. My wife, who has a keen sense of smell, won't put clothes out to dry unless the sun is shining because she says the washing then smells.

I suspect that's the answer. Simply replace at first sign of damage.

Some of the lines seem incredibly thin, 3mm, barely enough for a peg to get a grip.

That's very good of them, joining it up :)

"About this item

• 1 metre will be sent, if you order multiple quantities it will come as one continuous length "

Looks nice, problem with tying simple loops on the end. And as someone else has posted, zinc on the clothes.

A search brings up

We’ve been using cheap retractable washing lines (nylon cored) for over 30 years. We’re on our second one.

Tim

It's OK to get it into your lungs, but not on your clothes. (Have I got that right?)>

I suppose the tumble dryer gives then a 'nice chemical smell' (assuming she uses a conditioner).

Not sure if that S/S wire would be kind to the washing you hang on it.